1. Technical Field
The disclosure relates to a carbon nanotube/polymer composite, and particularly to a method for making carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite.
2. Description of Related Art
Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have a high Young's modulus, high thermal conductivity, and high electrical conductivity, among other properties, making them an ideal composite material supplement. A composite material having CNTs as reinforcement and electrical conductor has broad applications such as microelectronics, material science, biology, and chemistry because of good anti-static performance, microwave absorbing capability, electromagnetic shielding ability, and so on.
The conventional carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite includes a plurality of CNTs with conducting polymer pellets distributed in the gaps among the CNTs. The carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite is applicable in the field of super capacitors and in solar cell electrodes, in which charging and discharging of the conducting polymer pellets contract and expand conducting polymer pellet's volume. The spatial structures of CNTs may alleviate the volume contraction and expansion of the carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite caused by the mentioned volume contraction and expansion of the conducting polymer pellet. Moreover, the carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite's high electrical conductivity may reduce the resistance of the carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite. Therefore, the carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite provides favorable electrical conductivity and high specific electric capacity (exceeding 200 Farad/grams). However, in conventional technology, CNTs of the carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite require dispersal in strong oxidized acid, such as sulfuric or nitric acid and surfactant, followed by electrochemical reaction with the conducting polymer pellets, with the result that carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite film is finally obtained on the working electrode. Additionally, since the surfactant is not easily removed from the carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite, performance of the carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite is negatively affected. Moreover, because CNTs are easy to reunite, in the conventional technology, the CNTs cannot form a good electric conducting network. Considerable spacing between adjacent CNTs increases resistance of the carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite and decreases specific electric capacity thereof, adversely affecting electrical conductivity and heat conduction of the CNTs.
What is needed, therefore, is a method for manufacturing a carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite with CNTs uniformly dispersed in the carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite without destroying CNTs in the process.
Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views. The exemplifications set out herein illustrate at least one embodiment of the present carbon nanotube-conducting polymer composite, in one form, and such exemplifications are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention in any manner.